NOT A SHOCKER

10.13.13

Access to Birth Control Leads to Higher Income

Later in life.

In the department of totally obvious news, access to birth control and other family planning measures leads to higher income later in life, according to a study released last week. “Cheaper and more reliable contraception reduces the immediate and expected costs of delaying childbearing, freeing up resources in the parents’ human capital,” writes University of Michigan economist Martha Bailey, one of the researchers on the study. Family planning programs help cut down on fertility rates and reduce family size, which gives parents more money to invest. Fun historical fact: prior to 1965, contraception was outlawed in some states, although the states that had access to birth control between 1958 and 1965 had a 1.5 percent higher family income.